Consultation
by Kalanna Dae
Summary: Middle of Ocean's Eleven. Danny and Rusty are stuck. And everyone in the thieving world knows how smart Charlie Croker is. Well, everyone except Linus. The sequel, Visitation, is now up!


**Disclaimer: I do not, in any way, shape, or form, own Ocean's Eleven or The Italian Job. If I did, Linus would have his own romance like Danny and Rusty did and The Brazilian Job would have happened.**

**Any and errors can be blamed on me. Let me know if you spot any!**

Consultation: Ocean's 11/Italian Job Fic

Linus wasn't sure what they were doing here. They being him, Danny and Rusty.

They were in the restaurant at the Bellagio, Danny nursing a glass of wine, him staring at a glass of water and Rusty, as always, eating. The table they were sitting at had five seats (an more uncommon number in restaurants), with the two empty ones between him and Rusty, facing Danny.

At first glance, the couple was nothing interesting. But when their hostess led them in the direction of their table, no, to their table, Linus had to take a closer look.

They were one of those rare couples where the woman was taller than the man, albeit only by an inch or two. Her blonde hair was coiled tightly in a bun, while his was a dark brown.

But it was his manner, the way he walked, the way his eyes examined the room that caused a slight worry to surface in Linus' mind. Because it was the same way Danny and Rusty moved, the way he was learning to move: like a thief.

When the couple had sat and the hostess had moved on, the new arrivals. Turning down the drink menu, there was a few seconds of silence before the man broke it.

"Cut to the chase, Danny."

"Good to see you too, Charlie."

The man, Charlie, shot Danny a glare. "Don't tell me you asked me to fly across the country simply because who wanted to see an old friend. I had Lyle look up the conditions of your parole, and being allowed in Nevada, never mind Vegas, is definitely not supposed to happen."

Charlie and Danny stared each other down for a few seconds, Danny looking away first. "Okay then."

Charlie sat back in his chair again. "Okay. So what's this all about?"

Before Danny could answer Rusty chose to insert himself into the conversation.

"I don't if the topic is safe for everyone at this table," a flick of the eyes indicating the woman, who so far had not spoken, nor introduced.

Charlie looked more than a little miffed. "I could say the same for you."

Linus was starting to feel more than a little uncomfortable at the table, and the feeling only increased when Charlie turned his attention to him. It also didn't help that he had no idea what the three men were talking about.

Danny sighed, once again admitting defeat. "Charlie, this is Linus Caldwell. Linus, Charlie Croker and..."

"Stella. His wife." The woman continued for Danny. Rusty, who had just taken a bite, choked. Danny raised an eyebrow.

After coughing a few times, and a slap on the back from Danny, Rusty obviously couldn't resist asking a question.

"How did that happen?"

Charlie smiled. "Long story. She's John Bridger's daughter, which is what started it."

This time it was Danny's turn to choke, only on wine, not food. While he was recovering, Charlie turned to Linus.

"Any relation to Bobby Caldwell?"

Linus nodded. "My dad." He still wasn't sure what was happening in the conversation, but he mentally filed away parts of the conversation for future questions to pose to Rusty and Danny.

Charlie nodded. "You look like him." Linus wasn't sure what to say about that.

Danny, now recovered, "Now that that's done..."

Both Charlie and Stella turned serious, with Charlie leaning forward slightly in his seat.

"What's going on?"

Rusty took out a folder from under his jacket, Linus was never sure how those jackets could accommodate folders of that size, and slid it across the table to Charlie, who immediately started looking through it, Stella leaning over to look. "In short? We're stuck."

Linus felt the wind being knocked out of his lungs at the revelation. Danny and Rusty? Stuck? As far as Linus had known, the plan was all thought out, foolproof. But it wasn't even complete yet? That was a foreign thought.

Rusty picked up the conversation again. "We need a way to get the Danny, Yen, and the money out of the vault without tipping off Benedict's security. And we can't think of one."

Charlie was quiet for a few minutes, first thoroughly going through the papers in the file and then leaning back in his seat, drumming his fingers on the top of the table. Their waitress came and cleared away

Rusty's plate, quickly retreating before he moved again.

"What do you think your chances of getting the police on your back?"

Danny and Rusty shared a look before Danny opted to answer.

"Pretty high."

His response made Linus even more uncomfortable than he already was. How were they supposed to do this? He worked to get his attention back on the conversation.

"Can you intercept the call to the police?"

"Probably."

There was a few seconds pause where Charlie simply gazed at Danny.

And then a knowing look came over both Danny and Rusty's faces, with Danny giving a slight chuckle.

Now Linus was really confused.

Danny took a sip of wine, pointing at Charlie with his empty hand as he did so.

"You... you just love showing how much smarter you are.

Now it was Charlie's turn to chuckle, a grin spreading over his face as he leaned back in his chair, arms stretching out behind him.

"Maybe. Usual payment I'm guessing?"

"If this works I'm paying you double."

Standing up, Charlie cheekily replied, "Glad to hear it. I have plane tickets I have to pay for now." Stella followed, quickly followed by Danny, Rusty and, a little slower, Linus.

"We should go. I'm guessing you and your other guys are trying to stay inconspicuous at the moment?" Charlie put out his hand.

Danny shook it, then Stella's. Rusty followed suit. "Of course. Good to see you again."

"You too. Don't get arrested alright?" he and Stella didn't wait for answer, by the time Danny looked ready to fire back a response, they were already at the entrance to the restaurant.

Then the three of them sat down again, Rusty calling for the bill.

O11TIJO11TIJO11TIJ

On the way back up to their floor, Linus fell back a little to talk privately, or at least somewhat privately, to Danny.

"What the hell was that about?"

"We were stuck and needed help? I'm hoping you figured that out at least?"

"You know you could have just asked one of us."

"And I have a reputation to uphold. Besides, I wanted to introduce you to Charlie anyway and it seemed like a good time."

Linus couldn't help but shake his head at that. "Seriously? Your reputation?"

Danny turned around so abruptly Linus nearly walked into him. Up ahead, Rusty had stopped as well and was watching the conversation with a look of vague interest.

"Yeah, my reputation. You don't understand now, but you will someday, when you have one of your own. And Charlie's probably one of the smartest people out there; this was the quickest, and the easiest way. Now come on, we have work to do."

And just like that, Danny and Rusty resumed their walk back to their room, leaving Linus behind to catch up.

**Author's Notes: I'm thinking about doing a follow up, and maybe a sequel or two. What did you think? Reviews are greatly appreciated, especially constructive criticism, but flames shall be used to roast marshmallows. Keep in mind that us writers can't improve unless we know what's wrong!**


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